TRU Boosts Exec Team

“One of the key pillars of our TRU Transformation strategy is to develop high-performing, highly engaged, diverse teams, and we are assembling talent that can help lead important areas of the business and offer fresh perspectives,” says Antonio Urcelay, chairman and chief executive officer, TRU. “With these new leaders, and our internal team, we are intensely focused on looking at every aspect of the business for process improvement in making the company fit for growth.”

Debbie Lentz has been named senior vice president and chief supply chain officer, with responsibility for U.S. distribution and customs compliance, global importing and exporting, fleet operations and domestic transportation. She will oversee inventory planning and allocation as well as e-commerce fulfillment, while driving efforts to significantly improve in-stock

Christine Morena has been named senior vice president of human resources. Morena will provide strategic guidance and operational support to the company’s global human resources organization throughout its headquarters and regional offices, as well as stores and distribution centers in the U.S. and internationally. Morena most recently served as principal of her own advisory services business, and prior to this was chief human resources officer for Saks.

Finally, Joe Venezia has been named senior vice president of store operations, where he will be responsible for transforming the in-store experience through strong operations disciplines and customer service excellence in the company’s store network across the country. He also provides leadership for ensuring customers have a seamless in-store and online shopping experience through the company’s omni-channel offerings. Venezia was formerly at The Pantry and prior to that he served as senior vice president of Walmart U.S.

In addition to these new hires, the company recently announced the appointments of Michael Short as executive vice president and chief financial officer and Chetan Bhandari as senior vice president of corporate finance and Treasurer.